Tourists Come For The Sun, Stay For The Surgery

Doctors at UF Health Cancer Center - Orlando Health consult patients from dozens of states as more prove willing to travel for medical care

Amy Caterina, of San Diego, California, relaxes by a pool in Orlando, Florida, where she underwent surgery for lymphedema in her right leg. Caterina is one of a growing number of Americans taking part in domestic medical tourism. After researching doctors online, Caterina decided to make the 2,500 mile journey to have surgery at UF Health Cancer Center - Orlando Health. For more on her surgery and the medical tourism trend, click here: bit.ly/1tBspdS

Orlando, Fla (September 2014) – The first time Amy Caterina came to Orlando, Florida from her home in San Diego, she did what most tourists do; she took her son to Disney World, drove east to check out the beach and watched a rocket launch at Cape Canaveral.

On her second trip, Amy became one of the growing number of Americans who is travelling across state lines for medical care. It’s a trend known as domestic medical tourism, and business is booming. In Amy’s case, she travelled 2,500 miles from southern California to Orlando to undergo a procedure known as a vascular lymph node transfer (VLNTx).

“There are very few places that are offering this type of comprehensive approach to lymphedema, so more and more people are flying into Orlando for this operation,” saidRichard Klein, MD, Section Chief of the Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery Center at the UF Health Cancer Center – Orlando Health. “In fact, we’ve been performing this surgery just over a year now, and in that time we’ve already consulted with patients from 22 different states about it,” he said.

The procedure, developed in France, involves removing healthy lymph nodes from one part of the body, then transplanting them into the limb affected by lymphedema. “When we do that, quite often new lymphatics will grow in the surrounding tissue and restore function of the lymph system,” said Dr. Klein. “It’s been a life-changer for a lot of our patients. Basically, they’re almost back to normal and don’t even realize that they’ve ever had lymphedema,” he said. “It’s just amazing.”

It was the thought of living life without the struggles of lymphedema that caught Amy’s attention in San Diego. After overcoming cancer she began to notice the signs of lymphedema in 2008. At first, the swelling in her right leg was gradual and the pain was tolerable. Today, her leg often balloons to nearly twice its normal size, forcing Amy to use compression garments and pneumatic tubes to reduce the swelling.

“One day I was on a lymphedema support website and someone mentioned this procedure,” she said. “So, I researched it. Interestingly enough, I couldn’t find anything close to home, which is ironic because I live in San Diego and it’s a big city,” she said. “So, I decided to come to Orlando.”

Traditionally, medical tourism referred to patients who travelled to Mexico or overseas for treatment. Most did so to save money, but increasingly, more Americans are travelling within the U.S. for medical care, and specialized procedures like vascular lymph node transfer surgery are fueling this burgeoning business.

It’s promising enough that the state of Florida recently considered spending $5 million dollars to market the Sunshine State as a medical destination, and large corporations are getting in on the act. Lowes, Wal Mart and the supermarket chain Kroger have all negotiated deals with certain hospitals around the country to offer specialized care to their employees who need it. In many cases, these companies are paying travel expenses to send their employees across state lines for treatment.

At UF Health Cancer Center – Orlando Health, the calls keep coming. “From social media to the Internet, they’re finding us in a variety of ways,” said Dr. Klein. “I think we’re going to become more and more known for this type of procedure and we hope people are going to fly in from, not only around the country, but from around the world as well.”

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The organization, which includes Physician Associates, one of the largest multi-specialty practices in central Florida, and the area’s only Level One Trauma Centers for adults and pediatrics, is a statutory teaching hospital system that offers both specialty and community hospitals. They are: Orlando Regional Medical Center; Dr. P. Phillips Hospital; South Seminole Hospital; Health Central Hospital, the Arnold Palmer Medical Center, which consists of Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children and Winnie Palmer Hospital for Women & Babies; the UF Health Cancer Center – Orlando Health, South Lake Hospital (50 percent affiliation); and St. Cloud Regional Medical Center (20 percent affiliation). Areas of clinical excellence are heart and vascular, cancer care, neurosciences, surgery, pediatric orthopedics and sports medicine, neonatology, and women’s health.

Orlando Health is one of Central Florida’s largest employers with nearly 15,000 employees and more than 2,500 affiliated physicians supporting our philosophy of providing high quality care and service that revolves around patients’ needs. We prove this everyday with over 110,000 inpatient admissions and nearly 690,000 outpatient visits each year. In all, Orlando Health serves 1.6 million Central Florida residents and nearly 3,000 international patients annually. Additionally, Orlando Health provides approximately $239 million in support of community health needs. More information can be found at www.orlandohealth.com.

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Amy Caterina, of San Diego, California, relaxes by a pool in Orlando, Florida, where she underwent surgery for lymphedema in her right leg. Caterina is one of a growing number of Americans taking part in domestic medical tourism. After researching doctors online, Caterina decided to make the 2,500 mile journey to have surgery at UF Health Cancer Center - Orlando Health. For more on her surgery and the medical tourism trend, click here: bit.ly/1tBspdS

After learning about it on the Internet, Amy Caterina, of San Diego, California, booked a trip to Orlando, Florida to undergo a specialized surgery for lymphedema in her right leg. Doctors at UF Health Cancer Center - Orlando Health are among only a handful of surgeons in the nation who offer the procedure. Caterina is one of a growing number of Americans taking part in the `domestic medical tourism` trend. For more information, click here: bit.ly/1tBspdS

Doctors at UF Health Cancer Center - Orlando Health perform a specialized surgery on a patient with lymphedema. The surgery is only offered in a handful of hospitals in the U.S. and surgeons at Orlando Health say they are seeing a growing number of patients from out of state. A new trend called `domestic medical tourism` has patients planning trips that incorporate both relaxation and medical treatments. Details here: bit.ly/1tBspdS

Surgeons perform a lymph node transfer on a patient at UF Health Cancer Center - Orlando Health. The surgery is only offered at a few hospitals in the U.S. In the year following their first procedure, doctors at Orlando Health consulted with patients in more than 22 states, many of whom simultaneously booked vacations and surgical procedures as part of a growing trend known as `domestic medical tourism.` Details: bit.ly/1tBspdS

A lymphedema therapist measures the leg of Amy Caterina, of San Diego, California prior to surgery for lymphedema. After learning about the procedure on the Internet, Caterina travelled more than 2,500 miles to UF Health Cancer Center - Orlando Health, one of the few hospitals that offers it. A growing number of Americans are travelling across state lines to undergo medical procedures in a trend known as `domestic medical tourism.` To learn more about the trend and this specialized surgery, click here: bit.ly/1tBspdS

Dr. Jeffrey Feiner consults with Amy Caterina about a specialized surgery for patients with lymphedema. Caterina made the 2,500 mile trip from San Diego, California to undergo the procedure at UF Health Cancer Center - Orlando Health, one of the few hospitals in the country to offer it. More Americans are booking vacations centered around medical treatments in a trend known as `domestic medical tourism.` Details here: bit.ly/1tBspdS

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